The present invention relates to an apparatus for carbonating liquids such as water, and more particularly to a low cost Seltzer maker for use at municipal water pressure and which is particularly well suited for residential use.
Carbonated water is used in various flavored beverages, and is itself an enjoyable beverage that is commonly referred to as Seltzer water.
Various apparatus for producing carbonated water is well known. Examples can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,187,262; 4,225,537; 4,482,509; 4,656,933; 4,764,315; and 4,850,269. The '269 patent, entitled "Low Pressure, High Efficiency Carbonator and Method," issued on Jul. 25, 1989 to Hancock et al., includes a good discussion of the various prior art carbonating apparatus and systems. Such prior art devices can be categorized into (i) batch processes in which a pressure vessel needs to be filled with water, pressurized, vented and then used, (ii) large scale commercial devices which produce substantial volumes of carbonated beverages for packaging, and (iii) chemical reaction techniques in which chemicals are added to water to provide carbonation. Commercial carbonating systems generally require electrically driven pumps and/or motors in order to operate. Some systems have been proposed that use liquid carbon dioxide to cool water as it carbonates.
To date, no automatic, economical carbonation apparatus has been provided for producing relatively low volumes of Seltzer water using only municipal water pressure. It would be advantageous to provide such an apparatus.
It would be further advantageous to provide a carbonator that can be easily installed under a sink to provide a faucet for Seltzer water in the home or office. Such an apparatus should be low cost, environmentally safe, reliable, and easy to operate without any need for an external power source.
The present invention provides a carbonator having the aforementioned advantages.